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March 2015 Whitechapel Gallery Winter 2014/2015 Contents 03 December 2014 – March 2015 Whitechapel Gallery Winter 2014/2015 Contents 03 Exhibitions: Adventures of the Black Square: Abstract Art and Society 1915-2015 05 Project: Bart Lodewijks: White Li(n)es 06 Commission: David Batchelor: Monochrome Archive 07 Archive: Sculptors’ Papers from the Henry Moore Institute Archive 08 Artists’ Film International: Karen Mirza and Brad Butler: The Unreliable Narrator (2014) 09 Collection: Fiona Banner selects from the V-A-C Collection: Stamp Out Photographie 10 Coming soon 11-22 Events 23 - 24 Families 25 Schools and Teachers 26 Youth and Community 27 Buy Art 28 Café Bar/Venue Hire/Access Information 1 For over a century the Whitechapel has premiered Modernist masters such as Malevich, Mondrian and Oiticica. Their impact – and the power of abstract art today – is explored through the epic exhibition Adventures of the Black Square and solo commissions from David Batchelor and Bart Lodewijks. Iconic works from Moscow’s V-A-C collection selected by Fiona Banner and a host of film screenings, talks and performances – many free of charge – are just part of the dynamic portfolio of programmes on offer this season, alongside our world class Bookshop and Café. 2 Exhibitions Adventures of the Black Square: Abstract Art and Society 1915-2015 15 January–6 April 2015 Galleries 1, 8 & 9 (Victor Petitgas Gallery) This epic show takes Kazimir Malevich ’s radical painting of a black square – first shown in Russia 100 years ago – as the emblem of a new art and a new society. The exhibition features over 100 artists who took up its legacy, from Buenos Aires to Tehran, London to , New York to Tel Aviv. Their paintings, photographs and sculptures symbolize Modernism’s utopian aspirations and breakdowns. Presented chronologically the show follows four themes. ‘Utopia’ is expressed through Malevich’s black square, the progenitor of new aesthetic and political horizons, seized by artists from Vladimir Tatlin to Hélio Oiticica . ‘Architectonics’ presents floating geometries that propose new social spaces as imagined by Lyubov Popova or Piet Mondrian and Liam Gillick . ‘Communication’ spreads the message to the masses in manifestos and avant-garde graphics. (continues on next page) 3 The ‘Everyday’ embeds routines and objects in the aesthetics of progress as observed in a textile by Sophie Taeuber-Arp or the abstract motifs painted on Peruvian lorries captured by Armando Andrade Tudela . Middle Eastern artists such as Nazgol Ansarinia link Mo dernism with Arabic and Persian decorative arts; while Western artists such as Lewis Baltz , Peter Halley or Jenny Holzer critique economic and political abstraction. Book Tickets from 10 December: whitechapelgallery.org/exhibitions/abstract-art +44 (0)207 0929 895 Join: See the show for free as a Whitechapel Gallery Member. Join today: whitechapelgallery.org/membership Late night openings: Every Thursday until 9pm 4 Project Bart Lodewijks: White Li(n)es 9 December 2014–8 March 2015 Outset Project Gallery (Gallery 5)& 176/Zabludowicz Collection Project Gallery (Gallery 6) Armed with chalk and a spirit level, Dutch artist Bart Lodewijks (b. 1972) draws abstract white lines on everything from residential buildings in quiet suburbs to street surfaces in bustling city centres. As part of the abstract art takeover at the Whitechapel Gallery, Lodewijks’ new commission for London draws from workshops with local young people, where he found out about their relationships to the spaces around them. He is interested in how drawing can be a social process built on trust and conversations with individuals or groups. The exhibition includes a series of chalk drawings made in response to the Gallery and its surroundings, a newspaper designed in collaboration with Roma Publications and a display of material from past projects. Free entry 5 Commission David Batchelor: Monochrome Archive 22 December 2014–3 May 2015 (Gallery 2) For nearly 20 years British artist David Batchelor (b. 1955) has been photographing his series of Found Monochromes – white rectangles and squares encountered on walks through cities from London to São Paulo. While he started looking at how abstraction is embedded in the urban fabric, the series has grown into a far more personal project: a psychogeographical map of each city he visits. He says, ‘I often feel that abstract art is the art of the city and that the monochrome is its exemplary form’. Now for the first time all 500 images – an explosion of white rectangles in the Gallery – are shown as a multi-screen installation, giving a spectacular counterpoint to the Adventures of the Black Square exhibition. Free entry 6 Archive Sculptors’ Papers from the Henry Moore Institute Archive 23 September 2014–22 February 2015 Pat Matthews Gallery (Gallery 4) The brooding bronze head of Karl Marx by Laurence Bradshaw in Highgate cemetery has been both a site of pilgrimage for socialists and a target for attack. This exhibition presents the papers of six acclaimed and controversial British sculptors exploring the different journeys sculpture can make: from conception, to realised or unrealised execution, to public reception. With a focus on London between 1900 and 2010, the display draws from the archives of the Henry Moore Institute providing a view into the cultural upheavals public sculpture facilitates in society. The unique documents unfold the developing stages of historical projects devised by sculptors Laurence Bradshaw, Jacob Epstein , Rose Finn-Kelcey , Alfred Frank Hardiman , Paul Neagu , Oscar Nemon as well as contemporary artist Neal White . Free entry 7 Artists’ Film International Karen Mirza and Brad Butler: The Unreliable Narrator (2014) 14th January – 6 April 2015 Zilkha Auditorium The London-based artist duo’s new film tells the story of the 2008 attacks in Mumbai, India. The gripping footage is sourced from CCTV recordings of the siege and overlaid with telephone conversations between the attackers and their controllers, who orchestrate the violence from afar. The film suggests these scenes were performed for the news cameras and is part of Karen Mirza and Brad Butler ’s project, The Museum of Non Participation. The artists are selected by the Whitechapel Gallery as part of Artists’ Film International, a showcase for artists film with 16 partner organisations worldwide, which this year explores the theme of conflict. Free entry 8 Collection Fiona Banner selects from the V-A-C Collection: Stamp Out Photographie 9 December 2014-8 March 2015 Gallery 7 Renowned for exploring the visual possibilities of language, British artist Fiona Banner (b.1966) chooses works of art from the V-A-C collection, Moscow, as part of the Whitechapel Gallery’s programme opening up rarely seen collections from around the world. The display explores the blurred lines between photography and painting and includes Gerhard Richter ’s Kerze (1982), a hyper realistic painting of a single, glowing candle famously used as the cover of Sonic Youth’s 1988 album Daydream Nation . While Andy Warhol ’s Jackie (1964) based on photographs of Jackie Kennedy Onassis is shown alongside Stretch (1964), an optical black & white painting by Bridget Riley which appears to shift and vibrate. Free entry 9 Coming soon Christopher Williams 29 April–21 June 2015 The first UK retrospective of American artist Christopher Williams who subverts the conventions of photography and publicity to reflect on the histories and mechanisms of our image-based culture. Free entry Max Mara Art Prize for Women in collaboration with the Whitechapel Gallery: Corin Sworn 20 May–19 July 2015 The 2013–15 Prize winner’s new work focusses on the rich history of the Italian Commedia dell’Arte, the improvised theatrical comedies performed by touring troupes of actors from the 16th century onwards. Combining architecture, sculpture and textiles, the installation sets the stage for a live performance. In collaboration with the Collezione Maramotti. Free entry 10 Events January Abstract Art Performance Season Josiah McElheny: Interactions of the Abstract Body Performance Thursdays 15 Jan–2 April, 6pm–9pm (Free with exhibition entry) The New York-based artist choreographs dancers to activate his mirrored triangular and circular works of art in the galleries, transforming them into kinetic sculptures. With the Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music & Dance. Daniel Buren: Seven Ballets in Manhattan Performance Fri 30 Jan, 13 & 20 Feb, 6 & 27 Mar, 3pm, locations London- wide (Free) Performers carrying colourful striped placards create an abstract protest at landmarks across London, in a re-staging of Daniel Buren’s iconic performance first staged in New York in 1975. 11 Amalia Pica: A ∩B∩C∩A∩B∩C, a reading Performance Thurs 19 Mar, 7pm (£8.50/£6.50 conc.) The artist’s new immersive event centres on an abstract film by Rafael Ortega , made from her work A ∩ B ∩ C, and a performed narration. Anna Parkina: The Dream of the Volunteer Performance Sat 28 Mar, 3pm (£8.50/£6.50 conc.) Playing with light and shadow, the Russian artist weaves the performer’s body together with image and fabric. With music by pianist Sophie Agnel. Chiara Ambrosio: The Ghost Frequency Film Thurs 8 Jan, 7pm (£8.50/£6.50 conc.) The world premiere of this haunting documentary exploring the half populated, half-ruined village of Verbicaro in Calabria, southern Italy. With a live set by the film’s composer Bird Radio and artist’s Q&A. 12 Sexuality Talk Thurs 8 Jan, 7pm (£8.50/£6.50 conc.) Art historian Amelia Jones and artist Ron Athey discuss sexuality in contemporary art, from expression to repression, exploring how the term has shifted in tandem with artistic and theoretical debates. This event launches Sexuality: Documents of Contemporary Art, published by the Whitechapel Gallery and MIT press. David Batchelor Talk Thurs 15 Jan, 7pm (£8.50/£6.50 conc.) The artist discusses his 500 Found Monochromes on show in Gallery 2 and how the work relates to the idea of abstraction.
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